Via NASA’s PAO:

HOUSTON — After space shuttle Atlantis’ scheduled landing Thursday, July 21, a welcome home ceremony for the STS-135 astronauts is planned for Friday, July 22. Journalists and the public are invited to attend the 4 p.m. CDT event at Ellington Field’s NASA Hangar 990.

Gates to Ellington Field will open at 3:30 p.m.

The ceremony will be broadcast live on NASA Television. For NASA TV downlink information, schedules and links to streaming video, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/ntv

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Can’t catch the crew at Ellington?  “Like” us on our Facebook page or follow us on Twitter for updates on the STS-135 Crew Debrief, a free after hour’s event with the crew!

You can also meet an astronaut every Friday at Space Center Houston, FREE with admission!

On July 14^th, NASA is inviting mission followers to enjoy a virtual “All-American Meal” with the Crew of STS-135.  NASA is even revealing its brisket rub recipe –what some southerners would consider scandalous — so you and your family can get a “taste of space” at home!

NASA astronauts Doug Hurley (left), STS-135 pilot, and Mike Fossum, Expedition 28 flight engineer, are pictured onboard the International Space Station not long after the docking of the space shuttle Atlantis and the station during the mission's third day in space. Fossum displays a smile as he holds a bag of fruit and other items which was brought up by the shuttle crew. Photo credit: NASA

Home chefs around the globe have been invited to download the meal’s “formulations” (recipes), prepare the meal at home and enjoy it with the crew on the 5^th flight day of this historic final voyage.For those of you playing along at home, you may want to skip the thermostabilizing and dehydrating steps.

And now… the secret Brisket Rub Recipe

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Beef Brisket, Barbecued, Sliced

Dry Rub

Ingredients Percent by weight

Salt  29.51

Sugar granulated   23.61

Brown sugar, lightly packed  17.71

Chili powder   5.90

Paprika   5.90

Celery salt    4.43

Ground oregano   3.54

Ground white pepper   2.95

Garlic powder   2.21

Ground black pepper   1.48

Cumin   1.48

Dry mustard   0.79

Cayenne pepper   0.49

100.00

PREPARATION PROCEDURE

Trim beef brisket of fat and rub dry rub mixture into the meat surface (Dry Rub shall be at least 8 grams per pound of raw brisket).  Wrap the brisket in plastic wrap or suitable material and hold at 40°F (4°C) overnight.

Cook briskets in a regular oven set at 235°F (113°C), baste after 3 hours with barbecue sauce.

Cook another two hours until internal temperature is 175-180°F (79-82°C) baste with barbecue sauce and let sit in the oven for one more hour.

The brisket shall be sliced on a meat slicer set at 1/8 inch (3.0 mm).  Serve 2.8 to 3.5 oz (80-100g) of sliced brisket with add one ounce (30 g) of hickory smoke flavored barbecue sauce.

› Watch a video about NASA’s food lab

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If you would like to actually dine with an astronaut, as opposed to virtually, check out our Lunch with an Astronaut event every Friday.  This week we will host astronaut Dr. John-David Bartoe.  Afterwards, checkout our Living in Space presentation to learn more about how astronauts prepare food and eat in microgravity!

Discounted tickets are now available online at spacecenter.org

Crew patch for STS-135, the final flight of the Space Shuttle Program.

Join astronaut Mike McCully and Space Center Houston as we celebrate the final flight of the space shuttle program.  Enjoy a special launch presentation by astronaut Mike McCully in Blast-Off Theater or watch the shuttle launch live on our 5 story tall screen in the Northrop Grumman Theater.

Seating will begin at 10:15am. Please arrive early as seating is limited.

Then, join Mike McCully again at 11am or 1pm in Blast-Off Theater for a special presentation on his unique experiences with the Shuttle program.

Discounted tickets are now available online at spacecenter.org

Learn More about STS-135

Space Center Houston Presents

Every weekend in July is an adventure at Space Center Houston!

This weekend:

Party like a pirate at Space Center Houston!  Join Jolly Roger Jovan for “treasure hunter’s trivia” and win amazing prizes at 12pm and 3pm.  Plus, meet your favorite pirate characters and enjoy a swashbuckling good time in the Captain’s Free Dance Zone!

From buccaneers to spooks and masked avengers to cosmic invaders – every weekend is packed with surprises!   Enjoy unforgettable family fun with classic characters based on a new exciting theme each week.

July 1^st – 4^th:        Pirate Pandemonium

July 8^th – 10^th:     Halloween in July!

July 15^th – 17^th:   Super Hero Super Stars

July 22^nd – 24^th:  Alien Encounters

July 29^th – 31^st:   TBD

Discounted tickets are now available online at spacecenter.org

Via NASA PAO

(23 May 2011) — This image of the International Space Station and the docked Space Shuttle Endeavour, flying at an altitude of approximately 220 miles, was taken by Expedition 27 crew member Paolo Nespoli from the Soyuz TMA-20 following its undocking on May 23, 2011 (USA time).

It is the first-ever image of a space shuttle docked to the International Space Station. Onboard the Soyuz were Russian cosmonaut and Expedition 27 commander Dmitry Kondratyev; Nespoli, a European Space Agency astronaut; and NASA astronaut Cady Coleman. Coleman and Nespoli were both flight engineers. The three landed in Kazakhstan later that day, completing 159 days in space.

View the complete gallery at http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/multimedia/e27depart.html

Did you know you could try your hand at docking the shuttle at Space Center Houston?  In our Feel of Space training area you can practice landing the orbiter, plan a mission to Mars and even take a virtual tour of the International Space Station!  Discounted tickets are now available online at spacecenter.org